Oscar Piastri, McLaren driver, is facing difficulties in adapting to the new Formula 1 cars of 2026. Andrea Stella, team principal, has highlighted that the young Australian’s driving style may be too ‘clean’ for the demands presented by the current competitive conditions.
Just seven months ago, Piastri was one of the candidates for the world title, but the arrival of smaller and nimbler vehicles has changed the landscape. Currently, the Australian is in sixth position in the championship with 82 points, behind his teammate Lando Norris, who has scored 97.
The differences in qualifying are evident, with Piastri being outperformed by Norris in 9 of the last 10 sessions. Since the Canadian race, Piastri has managed to qualify seventh in nearly seven sessions, except for one, where he finished eighth at Silverstone.
Andrea Stella has commented that the current cars require a more aggressive and dynamic driving style. ‘Driving too cleanly can make lap times uncompetitive. One must accept that the cars have a certain degree of instability and be prepared to handle it. Lando adapts better to this approach than Oscar,’ declared Stella.
In his latest qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix, Piastri qualified seventh after having an incident at Stavelot. With a hydraulic problem that limited his practice on Friday, he acknowledged that the car has been difficult to handle and that finding the balance is a constant challenge.
Despite the difficulties, Piastri has expressed his determination to adapt and make the most of his potential, acknowledging that his ability to extract more performance from the car is a factor he needs to improve.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
